Paul Massey (7 January 1960 – 26 July 2015) was an English

organised crime Organized crime (or organised crime) is a category of transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals to engage in illegal activity, most commonly for profit. While organized crime is generally th ...

figure and

Salford Salford () is a city and the largest settlement in the City of Salford metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. In 2011, Salford had a population of 103,886. It is also the second and only other city in the metropolitan county afte ...

-based businessman. He was shot dead outside his home by Mark Fellows on 26 July 2015.

Early life

Massey was born on 7 January 1960 in Ordsall,

, England. He was one of six children of Rose Massey and John Massey. When Massey was 12, he was arrested for criminal damage and sent to

approved school An approved school was a type of residential institution in the United Kingdom to which young people could be sent by a court, usually for committing offences but sometimes because they were deemed to be beyond parental control. They were modelle ...

Criminal career

In the 1990s, Massey established several security companies. Through these businesses,

Damian Noonan Desmond Patrick "Dessy" Noonan (8 August 1959 – 19 March 2005) was an English organised crime figure from Manchester, who acted as a political fixer for the Noonan crime family. He and his younger brother, Dominic Noonan, were suspected by pol ...

, he and his gang were able to control the doors of several Manchester-area nightclubs. In 1999, Massey was sentenced to 14 years in prison for stabbing a man in the groin. Several media outlets reported that Massey served as an important mediator between rival organised crime firms in

Greater Manchester Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county and combined authority, combined authority area in North West England, with a population of 2.8 million; comprising ten metropolitan boroughs: City of Manchester, Manchester, City of Salford, Salford ...

. At the time of his death, the regional organised crime squad was investigating Massey over allegations of money-laundering.

Mayoral campaign

In 2012, following his 2007 release from

Frankland Prison HM Prison Frankland is a Category A men's prison located in the village of Brasside in County Durham, England. Frankland is operated by His Majesty's Prison Service. History Frankland was originally opened in 1980 with four wings each holding ...

, Massey announced he was running for mayor of Salford. He finished seventh out of ten candidates.

Death

On 26 July 2015, Massey was shot dead outside his home on Manchester Road,

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, by a lone gunman. Mark Fellows, the killer, was reported to have been wearing military style fatigues and carried a weapon "similar to a sub machine gun". Greater Manchester Police offered a £50,000 reward for information pertaining to the killing.

Aftermath

Authorities in the Manchester area feared an escalation in gang violence related to Massey's death. Manchester police believe that the shooting of a 29-year-old woman and her seven-year-old son was linked to retribution for the Massey killing. From January–December 2015, there were 19 shootings in Salford.

Arrest and conviction

On 1 June 2018, Fellows was charged with Massey's murder and also that of Massey's close friend, Liverpool gangster John Kinsella. Fellows was subsequently convicted and sentenced to a

whole life order In England and Wales, life imprisonment is a sentence that lasts until the death of the prisoner, although in most cases the prisoner will be eligible for early release after a minimum term set by the judge. In exceptional cases, however, a jud ...

. Conspirators used

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-equipped BlackBerry phones to co-ordinate the murder.

Personal

Massey had five children and eight grandchildren at the time of his death. Massey was given the nickname "Mr Big" by city councillor Joe Burrows during a meeting in 1992 held to address ongoing civil disturbances in Salford.

References

External links

BBC Sounds BBC Sounds is a Closed platform, walled garden streaming media and audio download service from the BBC that includes live radio broadcasts, audio on demand, and podcasts. The service is available on a wide range of devices, including mobile pho ...

br>Gangster: The Story Of Paul Massey
{{DEFAULTSORT:Massey, Paul 1960 births 2015 deaths Criminals from Greater Manchester Criminals from Lancashire Deaths by firearm in England English gangsters English murder victims Murdered British gangsters People from Ordsall People murdered in England